Smokefree Hebrides was delighted to receive a surprise visit from three of their successful quitters on Friday 16th December.

Angus Campbell (Stornoway), Malcolm Campbell (Stornoway) and Murdo Fraser (Aignish) arrived at the Smokefree Hebrides offices at Laxdale Court, to offer their thanks for the support received on their quit smoking journey.  All three men have now been quit for several years and are overjoyed by this.

Joanne O’Donnell, Smokefree Hebrides Coordinator said, “Angus and Malcolm who are brothers and friends with Murdo, have all been such wonderful supporters of our service.  They have actively promoted and encouraged others to take up the offer of quit smoking support, stating how it was much easier than they had imagined and that the benefits speak for themselves.  In fact the men were our “Poster Boys” for the Western Isles No Smoking Day campaigns held in 2015 and 2016, creating great interest on social media encouraging other quitters to join our gallery.”

“Since quitting smoking, the men have found so many improvements in their health and wellbeing: Angus now enjoys his hobbies much more and finds it easier to manage his garden and fishing trips; Murdo has so much more energy to enjoy time with his grandson; and Malcolm, who had always enjoyed walking, can now walk 2.6 miles minimum every morning, doubling this distance in the summer months.  The quit smoking competition they also started between them was quite intense –  in particular when their Carbon Monoxide (CO) levels were checked and they wanted to see who had the best reading amongst them.”

Carbon Monoxide (CO) levels are used to measure the amount of CO in your blood.  CO is a poisonous gas, has no colour and no smell.  It is the product of burning items and found in tobacco smoke and also in car exhaust fumes.  The good news is that when you stop smoking, the level of CO in your blood falls immediately and will become the same as that of a non-smoker within a couple of days.  Smokers who quit will have more energy, better circulation and increased concentration.

The men’s surprise visit was no exception to their previous quitting routine as each once again took up the opportunity to have their CO levels checked, which resulted in three ‘gold stars’ with a 0 reading for each.

With evidence showing that smokers are four times more likely to successfully quit for good with the support of a smoking cessation service, it came as no surprise that Smokefree Hebrides has an acknowledged successful quit rate of 65% at three months in the Western Isles, the highest quit rate in Scotland. Quitting smoking is a challenge and Smokefree Hebrides would like to help, so this New Year why not contact them and feel the benefits.  Smokefree Hebrides provides free confidential advice, help and support to anyone in the Western Isles who would like to quit smoking. Their friendly advisors can help increase your chances of quitting smoking success.  Contact Smokefree Hebrides on (01851) 701623.

Let us help you QUIT for life.